Difference between revisions of "Sita" - New World Encyclopedia
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[[Image:Lord_Ram.jpg|thumb|250px|Lord Rama (center) with wife Sita, brother [[Lakshmana]] and devotee [[Hanuman]].]] | [[Image:Lord_Ram.jpg|thumb|250px|Lord Rama (center) with wife Sita, brother [[Lakshmana]] and devotee [[Hanuman]].]] | ||
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| − | + | In Hinduism, '''Sita''' ([[Devanagari]]: '''सीता''') is the wife of [[Rama]], the seventh [[Avatara|avatāra]] of [[Vishnu]], and is regarded as the most esteemed exemplar of womanly elegance and wifely virtue. Sita is one of the principal characters in the ''[[Ramayana]]'', a [[Hindu Epics|Hindu epic]] which details the heroic exploits of her husband, as well as the wonderful love story that develops between he and Sita. According to Hindu belief, Sita herself was an avatāra of [[Lakshmi]], Vishnu's consort, who chose to reincarnate herself on Earth and endure an arduous life to provide humankind with an example of good virtues. | |
| − | + | ==Origin== | |
| − | + | The Sanskrit word ''Sita'' literally means "[[furrow]]", a term held by ancient Indians to be redolent of fecundity and the many blessings accruent from settled agriculture. The Sita of the Ramayana may have been named after a more ancient [[Vedic religion|Vedic]] [[goddess]] Sita, who is mentioned once in the [[Rigveda]] as an earth goddess who blesses the land with good crops. | |
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| − | + | ==Mythology== | |
| − | === | + | ===Childhood=== |
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| − | Sita was | + | Sita was a foundling, discovered in a furrow in a ploughed field, and for that reason has been regarded as a daughter of [[Bhudevi]], the Hindu earth Goddess. Accordingly, her name literally means "[[furrow]]", a term held by ancient Indians to be redolent of fecundity and the many blessings accruent from settled agriculture. Her discoverers were [[Janaka]], king of Mithila (Modern day [[Janakpur]], [[Nepal]]) and his wife Sunayana, who gave her the name Sita and raised her as their own. She also inherits the name ''Janaki'' as the daughter of king [[Janaka]], and the name ''Mythili'' or ''Maithili'' as the princess of Mithila. One obscure version of the story, popular in parts of [[Kerala]], even goes so far as to suggest that Sita was a child of Ravana, the demon king of Lanka who would later go on to kidnap her in lust. Upon giving birth to the infant who would grow to be Sita, his wife Mandodari places her in Janaka's ploguh-path since she fears that the child could be the harbinger of her husband's doom. |
| − | Sita | + | When Sita reached adolescence, a ''[[Swayamvara|swayamwara]]'' or "self-choice" ceremony was held for the purpose of selecting a suitable husband for her. In order to find the best match for his daughter Sita, King Janaka presented all would-be suitors with the challenge of lifting the bow of Lord [[Shiva]] and stringing it. Only the man who performed this task would be able to wed Sita. Rama, prince of [[Ayodhya]], along with his brother Lakshmana and the Sage [[Vishvamitra]] were in attendance at this ceremony, and they watched as numerous noblemen failed at stringing the bow. Disappointed, King Janaka poured out his dilemma and misery, sending Lakshmana into a rage at the fact that King Janaka did not offer Rama the same test. Upon the invitation of King Janaka, Lord Rama proceeded to lift the bow of Shiva and stringing it with ease. So strong and adept was Rama in performing the task that he broke the mighty bow in the process. With that, not only was Rama's might evident to King Janaka, but he had also stolen the heart of Sita, and so the two were wed. |
| − | + | [[Image:Ravi Varma-Ravana Sita Jathayu.jpg|thumb|right|float|Ravana abducts Sita, by [[Ravi Varma]]]] | |
| + | ===Exile, Abduction and Emancipation=== | ||
| − | + | Some time after the wedding, circumstances became such that Rama felt it his duty to leave Ayodhya and spend a period of exile in the forests of [[Dandakaranya]]. Considering it the duty of a wife to stand beside her husband no matter what, Sita also willingly renounced the comforts of the palace and joined her husband in the forest. The worst was yet to come, however. One day Rama had gone away from the forest in which they lived in order to fetch a magnificent golden deer to please Sita. With Rama gone, [[Ravana]], the demonic king of [[Sri Lanka|Lanka]] and one of Sita's former suitors, crept into Rama's ashram in which Sita sat vulnerable<ref>Some versions of the ''Ramayana'' suggest an even more profound history between Sita and Ravana. These variations of the story claim that Sita was actually a reincarnation of [[Vedavati]], an orphan lady who placed a curse upon Ravana after he had ravished her. </ref>. Overwhelmed by her beauty and his own uncontrollable passion, Ravana kidnapped her. Upon discovering what had happened, Rama and Lakshmana set out on a hazardous search to find Sita. | |
| − | + | Ravana carried Sita back to the distant island realm where he ruled. At one point along the way, [[Jatayu (Ramayana)|Jatayu]], the vulture-king who was a good friend of Rama, attempted to swoop down to rescue Sita from Ravana, but was stymied in his attempt by the powerful demon who chopped off his wings. Jatayu survived long enough to inform Rama of what had happened and the direction in which Sita was being dragged. Upon their arrival in Lanka, Sita was held in captivity for a year. During this time, Sita assiduously protected her chastity at all costs, completely unwavering in her resolve despite Ravana's repeated advances upon her, as well as torture at the hands of female rakshasas. Sita also maintained a chaste mind, never once wavering in her adherence to her husband. Her faith is maintained when [[Hanuman]], the anthropomorphic monkey who lives in service of Rama, locates where she has been held captive and provides her with Rama's ring, a gesture of her husband's undying love. Although Hanuman offers to free Sita and carry her home on his back, she refuses the offer, knowing that is the sole destiny of Rama to overcome Ravana and rescue her. | |
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| − | + | Eventually, Rama slays Ravana in a tremedous battle which marks the climax of a battle between Rama's allies and Ravana's army of [[rakshasas]]. [[Hanuman]] brings this news to Sita, and asks for permission to kill the female Rakshasas who have tortured her. Sita tells [[Hanuman]] an ancient story known as ''Na parah paap ma adate'' (Do not follow the sins committed by others) - one should behave according to one's [[dharma]] (righteousness) even if another has done you wrong. Eventually, Sita is liberated from her shackles by Rama. | |
| − | ==Sita | + | ===Agni pariksha=== |
| − | + | As could be expected, Sita is overjoyed to embrace Rama once again after he rescues her. Rama, however, will not look at her, staring fixedly at the ground instead. In his inexplicable despondency, Rama informs Sita that he had fought the war solely for the purpose of avenging the dishonour that Ravana had done him, and that she was now free to do as she pleased with herself in the future. This sudden turn of events rendered the onlooking Sugriva, Hanuman, and Lakshmana, as well as the surviving vanaras and rakshasas shocked and mystfied. Sita was absolutely devastated by Rama's actions, and, shaking with grief and humiliation, begged Lakshmana to build her a pyre upon which she could burn herself alive, as the thought of life without Rama filled her with insurmountable despair. At this point, Lakshmana grew angered with Rama for the first time in his life, but, following Rama's order, he builds a pyre for Sita nonetheless. While the onlookers stood paralyzed with the sheer pathos of the display, Sita walked slowly into the fire. But to their greater shock and wonder, she was completely unharmed by the flames. Instead, she glowed radiantly from the centre of the pyre. Rama interpreted this as confirmation of her purity, since [[Agni]], the fire god, would surely have destroyed the impure and sinful, and Rama immediately ran to Sita and embraced her. He had never doubted her purity for a second, but, as he would explain to Sita, the people of the world would not have accepted or honoured her as a queen or a woman if she had not passed this test, commonly referred to as the ''Agni pariksha''. | |
| − | + | ===Later life=== | |
| + | Upon returning to Ayodhya, Rama is crowned King and Sita is to be his queen. In spite of her survival of the Agni pariksha, it soon became evident that a significant percentage of the citizenry of Ayodhya still doubted her chastity, considering the persuasive power of Ravana and the sheer length of time she had been away. These, these unconvinced citizens were of the opinion that Sita was unfit to be queen. Although Rama knew in his heart that these aspersions cast on Sita were entirely baseless, he nevertheless felt that his responsibilities to his citizens as a ruler superceded his responsibilites to his wife as a husband. This unwavering sense of duty led Rama to order the banishment of Sita from his household, and, ever the faithful wife, Sita complied with his command. | ||
| − | + | And so, once again Sita was in exile, this time all by herself and also pregnant. She sought refuge in the hermitage of the sage [[Valmiki]], where she was delivered twin sons, [[Lava (Ramayana)|Lava]] and [[Kusha (Ramayana)|Kusha]]. Sita raised her sons single-handedly in the hermitage. They grew up to be valiant and intelligent and were eventually united with their father. Once she had witnessed the acceptance of her children by Rama, Sita sought final refuge in the arms of her mother [[Bhumidevi]], the Earth Goddess. Hearing her plea for release from an unjust world and from a life that had rarely been happy, the earth dramatically split open; Bhumidevi manifested herself and took Sita away to a better world. Some believe that this part of the story, Luv-Kushkanda, was written later than the rest of the text and promoted primarily by the British. As such, many Hindu organizations today disown Luv-Kushkanda and state that after Ram is crowned king there is Ram rajya, an epoche in which all of humankind lives in happiness, and Rama and Sita live together. | |
| − | + | ==Depiction== | |
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[[Image:Srisita_ram_laxman_hanuman_manor.JPG|200px|thumb|Deities of Sri Sita Devi (far right), Sri Rama (center), Sri Lakshmana (far left) and Sri Hanuman (below seated) at the Bhaktivedanta Manor, Watford [[England]]]] | [[Image:Srisita_ram_laxman_hanuman_manor.JPG|200px|thumb|Deities of Sri Sita Devi (far right), Sri Rama (center), Sri Lakshmana (far left) and Sri Hanuman (below seated) at the Bhaktivedanta Manor, Watford [[England]]]] | ||
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| − | + | ==Worship== | |
| − | + | ==Notes== | |
| − | + | <references/> | |
| − | + | ==References== | |
| − | + | *Kinsley, David. ''Hindu Goddesses: Vision of the Divine Feminine in the Hindu Religious Traditions''. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1988. ISBN 978-0520063396 | |
| − | *''Hindu Goddesses: Vision of the Divine Feminine in the Hindu Religious | + | *Mitchell, A.G. ''Hindu Gods and Goddesses''. London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office, 1982. ISBN 011290372X |
| − | * '' | + | *Pattanaik, Devadutt. ''Indian Mythology: Tales, Symbols and Rituals from the Heart of the Subcontinent''. Rochester, VT: Inner Traditions International, 2003. ISBN 0892818700 |
==External links== | ==External links== | ||
Revision as of 05:37, 15 August 2007
In Hinduism, Sita (Devanagari: सीता) is the wife of Rama, the seventh avatāra of Vishnu, and is regarded as the most esteemed exemplar of womanly elegance and wifely virtue. Sita is one of the principal characters in the Ramayana, a Hindu epic which details the heroic exploits of her husband, as well as the wonderful love story that develops between he and Sita. According to Hindu belief, Sita herself was an avatāra of Lakshmi, Vishnu's consort, who chose to reincarnate herself on Earth and endure an arduous life to provide humankind with an example of good virtues.
Origin
The Sanskrit word Sita literally means "furrow", a term held by ancient Indians to be redolent of fecundity and the many blessings accruent from settled agriculture. The Sita of the Ramayana may have been named after a more ancient Vedic goddess Sita, who is mentioned once in the Rigveda as an earth goddess who blesses the land with good crops.
Mythology
Childhood
Sita was a foundling, discovered in a furrow in a ploughed field, and for that reason has been regarded as a daughter of Bhudevi, the Hindu earth Goddess. Accordingly, her name literally means "furrow", a term held by ancient Indians to be redolent of fecundity and the many blessings accruent from settled agriculture. Her discoverers were Janaka, king of Mithila (Modern day Janakpur, Nepal) and his wife Sunayana, who gave her the name Sita and raised her as their own. She also inherits the name Janaki as the daughter of king Janaka, and the name Mythili or Maithili as the princess of Mithila. One obscure version of the story, popular in parts of Kerala, even goes so far as to suggest that Sita was a child of Ravana, the demon king of Lanka who would later go on to kidnap her in lust. Upon giving birth to the infant who would grow to be Sita, his wife Mandodari places her in Janaka's ploguh-path since she fears that the child could be the harbinger of her husband's doom.
When Sita reached adolescence, a swayamwara or "self-choice" ceremony was held for the purpose of selecting a suitable husband for her. In order to find the best match for his daughter Sita, King Janaka presented all would-be suitors with the challenge of lifting the bow of Lord Shiva and stringing it. Only the man who performed this task would be able to wed Sita. Rama, prince of Ayodhya, along with his brother Lakshmana and the Sage Vishvamitra were in attendance at this ceremony, and they watched as numerous noblemen failed at stringing the bow. Disappointed, King Janaka poured out his dilemma and misery, sending Lakshmana into a rage at the fact that King Janaka did not offer Rama the same test. Upon the invitation of King Janaka, Lord Rama proceeded to lift the bow of Shiva and stringing it with ease. So strong and adept was Rama in performing the task that he broke the mighty bow in the process. With that, not only was Rama's might evident to King Janaka, but he had also stolen the heart of Sita, and so the two were wed.
Exile, Abduction and Emancipation
Some time after the wedding, circumstances became such that Rama felt it his duty to leave Ayodhya and spend a period of exile in the forests of Dandakaranya. Considering it the duty of a wife to stand beside her husband no matter what, Sita also willingly renounced the comforts of the palace and joined her husband in the forest. The worst was yet to come, however. One day Rama had gone away from the forest in which they lived in order to fetch a magnificent golden deer to please Sita. With Rama gone, Ravana, the demonic king of Lanka and one of Sita's former suitors, crept into Rama's ashram in which Sita sat vulnerable[1]. Overwhelmed by her beauty and his own uncontrollable passion, Ravana kidnapped her. Upon discovering what had happened, Rama and Lakshmana set out on a hazardous search to find Sita.
Ravana carried Sita back to the distant island realm where he ruled. At one point along the way, Jatayu, the vulture-king who was a good friend of Rama, attempted to swoop down to rescue Sita from Ravana, but was stymied in his attempt by the powerful demon who chopped off his wings. Jatayu survived long enough to inform Rama of what had happened and the direction in which Sita was being dragged. Upon their arrival in Lanka, Sita was held in captivity for a year. During this time, Sita assiduously protected her chastity at all costs, completely unwavering in her resolve despite Ravana's repeated advances upon her, as well as torture at the hands of female rakshasas. Sita also maintained a chaste mind, never once wavering in her adherence to her husband. Her faith is maintained when Hanuman, the anthropomorphic monkey who lives in service of Rama, locates where she has been held captive and provides her with Rama's ring, a gesture of her husband's undying love. Although Hanuman offers to free Sita and carry her home on his back, she refuses the offer, knowing that is the sole destiny of Rama to overcome Ravana and rescue her.
Eventually, Rama slays Ravana in a tremedous battle which marks the climax of a battle between Rama's allies and Ravana's army of rakshasas. Hanuman brings this news to Sita, and asks for permission to kill the female Rakshasas who have tortured her. Sita tells Hanuman an ancient story known as Na parah paap ma adate (Do not follow the sins committed by others) - one should behave according to one's dharma (righteousness) even if another has done you wrong. Eventually, Sita is liberated from her shackles by Rama.
Agni pariksha
As could be expected, Sita is overjoyed to embrace Rama once again after he rescues her. Rama, however, will not look at her, staring fixedly at the ground instead. In his inexplicable despondency, Rama informs Sita that he had fought the war solely for the purpose of avenging the dishonour that Ravana had done him, and that she was now free to do as she pleased with herself in the future. This sudden turn of events rendered the onlooking Sugriva, Hanuman, and Lakshmana, as well as the surviving vanaras and rakshasas shocked and mystfied. Sita was absolutely devastated by Rama's actions, and, shaking with grief and humiliation, begged Lakshmana to build her a pyre upon which she could burn herself alive, as the thought of life without Rama filled her with insurmountable despair. At this point, Lakshmana grew angered with Rama for the first time in his life, but, following Rama's order, he builds a pyre for Sita nonetheless. While the onlookers stood paralyzed with the sheer pathos of the display, Sita walked slowly into the fire. But to their greater shock and wonder, she was completely unharmed by the flames. Instead, she glowed radiantly from the centre of the pyre. Rama interpreted this as confirmation of her purity, since Agni, the fire god, would surely have destroyed the impure and sinful, and Rama immediately ran to Sita and embraced her. He had never doubted her purity for a second, but, as he would explain to Sita, the people of the world would not have accepted or honoured her as a queen or a woman if she had not passed this test, commonly referred to as the Agni pariksha.
Later life
Upon returning to Ayodhya, Rama is crowned King and Sita is to be his queen. In spite of her survival of the Agni pariksha, it soon became evident that a significant percentage of the citizenry of Ayodhya still doubted her chastity, considering the persuasive power of Ravana and the sheer length of time she had been away. These, these unconvinced citizens were of the opinion that Sita was unfit to be queen. Although Rama knew in his heart that these aspersions cast on Sita were entirely baseless, he nevertheless felt that his responsibilities to his citizens as a ruler superceded his responsibilites to his wife as a husband. This unwavering sense of duty led Rama to order the banishment of Sita from his household, and, ever the faithful wife, Sita complied with his command.
And so, once again Sita was in exile, this time all by herself and also pregnant. She sought refuge in the hermitage of the sage Valmiki, where she was delivered twin sons, Lava and Kusha. Sita raised her sons single-handedly in the hermitage. They grew up to be valiant and intelligent and were eventually united with their father. Once she had witnessed the acceptance of her children by Rama, Sita sought final refuge in the arms of her mother Bhumidevi, the Earth Goddess. Hearing her plea for release from an unjust world and from a life that had rarely been happy, the earth dramatically split open; Bhumidevi manifested herself and took Sita away to a better world. Some believe that this part of the story, Luv-Kushkanda, was written later than the rest of the text and promoted primarily by the British. As such, many Hindu organizations today disown Luv-Kushkanda and state that after Ram is crowned king there is Ram rajya, an epoche in which all of humankind lives in happiness, and Rama and Sita live together.
Depiction
Worship
Notes
- ↑ Some versions of the Ramayana suggest an even more profound history between Sita and Ravana. These variations of the story claim that Sita was actually a reincarnation of Vedavati, an orphan lady who placed a curse upon Ravana after he had ravished her.
ReferencesISBN links support NWE through referral fees
- Kinsley, David. Hindu Goddesses: Vision of the Divine Feminine in the Hindu Religious Traditions. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1988. ISBN 978-0520063396
- Mitchell, A.G. Hindu Gods and Goddesses. London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office, 1982. ISBN 011290372X
- Pattanaik, Devadutt. Indian Mythology: Tales, Symbols and Rituals from the Heart of the Subcontinent. Rochester, VT: Inner Traditions International, 2003. ISBN 0892818700
External links
- Sita - The Silent Power of Suffering and Sacrifice by Sri Nitin Kumar.
- Sita Sings the Blues (clips from a modern animated feature which portrays the Ramayana from Sita's perspective)
- Weekly podcast on Vedic Chanting, Mnatras, Vedic Mythology and stories from the Puranas
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